Life is Funny Like That
by Hellbendet
Summary: What if the SGC had a superpowered allie that wasn't on the front lines?


Hey peoples.

I know I haven't been updating my first story; I have kinda hit a roadblock with that one. I do however thank all my reviewers and the people who put me on their story alert list. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside (no this is not sarcasm, I do actually smile). This fanfic however just kinda hit me, I was inspired for this one after I read "What I Always Wanted" by Soului, and it's an awesome oneshot if you haven't read it. Afterwards I started looking into Danny Phantom and decided I wanted to cross it with Stargate SG-1, which is without a doubt my favorite sci-fi show. FYI, Danny Phantom is not cannon (I actually haven't seen it myself so I'm going on only my research). So here goes, and anything recognizable isn't mine.

_**Daniel Jackson's Funeral after the first activation of the Stargate**_

_It's kind of awkward attending the funeral of someone you know isn't dead._ Mused Jack O'Neill to himself, but he had felt obligated to do so anyway. Not that the geek was growing on him or anything. _And from the looks of things, _he considered in slight amusement, _I'm not the only one,_ looking to the other uncomfortable survivors of the mission. Jack thought that it was only fair, and it was easier to deal with because no friends or family of the deceased came; but that did little to cheer him.

The funeral service was almost over when the door of a taxi opened and a young man with black hair and blue eyes climbed out. He looked a little rough around the edges and wore a rather well used white tee and jeans with a leather bag at his side. He walked directly to the group and began observing them just as they him. When the preacher finished and the casket lowered he reached into his bag and withdrew a children's book on Egypt and tossed it onto the casket. Jack shifted uncomfortably, someone had come and the whole Jackson's dead thing had suddenly lost all appeal.

Turning the stranger, who had yet to say a word, gestured Jack to speak with him. Slowly Jack followed him a few feet and stopped waiting for some insight as to how this would play out. Nothing could have prepared him for what did happen. "I know he's not dead" the stranger said calmly. "But I wonder why would the government go to all this trouble for one archeologist who was laughed out of the community?" Jack had no response. The man waited but eventually sighed in acceptance, "If he ever decides to become 'not dead' tell him as God is our Judge I will prank him for months if he got in trouble without calling me."

Then the man turned and walked out of the cemetery without as much as a backward glance. Jack was so bewildered he didn't stop him. Later when Jack was drinking in memory of those that died on the mission he thought about the man again, considering looking into Jackson's background. But in the morning when nursing his hangover he passed it off as just another oddity that happens in real life. Fiction being more practical than non-fiction or something like that, he thought to himself before swallowing a handful of aspirin. It was too bad really; if he had looked into it he might have saved himself a few headaches, but probably not.

_**Abydos, one year later**_

Jack defiantly didn't miss the heat. Skarra was also defiantly worth it. Who said life didn't even out. And the whole saluting thing reminded him of Charlie, there were a lot of fond memories there. On the way to, well, whatever it was Jackson wanted to show them Jack caught sight of his eyes for the first time. It was startling how much they reminded him of another pair he had seen a year ago. Now Jack wasn't exactly the kind of person to retain what he considered useless information but that encounter suddenly came to the forefront of his mind.

Debating a moment and finally deciding that Jackson should know urged him ahead of the group a few paces. He incidentally interrupts Jackson's conversation with Carter, incidentally. Seeing the exasperated look and unwilling to be lectured in this heat he quickly began. "We had a funeral for you, you know_."_ Jackson looked a bit taken aback but didn't interrupt. "There was someone who came, a guy with black hair and blue eyes. He didn't give his name but he said something about God's and Judges and calling._"_ Message over Jack quickly dropped back to talk with someone else.

It was too bad really; once again Jack missed something important. Daniel Jackson had paled, yes paled, which was really quite the accomplishment for someone with a tan. But thinking that naming his friend godfather of his first child would go a long was in saving his arse Daniel decided to speak about it with Sha're when he got back to the pyramid. Yes a child would do perfectly, that and lots of "don't prank me" artery clogging burgers.

_**P3X-513, 1 month and a half later**_

SG-9's team leader Jonas Hanson called himself a God. Considering the fact that he began his tenure in the SGC knowing he would be fighting self-styled Egyptians Gods who were in all actuality snake-like aliens using a big circular stone to travel through stable wormholes to planets on the other side of the galaxy might, just might, have messed with his head a bit. Although considering just how far he had fallen there must have been a big problem to begin with. _Makes one wonder about just how good are our psych tests are anyway? _Jack also wondered about his own ability to think completely random thoughts while being held at gunpoint.

_At least the plan is going well _he thought to himself. Hanson was being proven a raving madman and the shield would be up when the signal was sent. _Which is gonna happen right about…now! _Jack, Carter, and SG-9's last loyal member Conner freed themselves in the ensuing fight. The natives picked Hanson up and surged towards the Stargate. Jack reached, he wouldn't get there in time but he had to try. Hanson deserved what he would get, running into the iris since an IDC wasn't sent, but that isn't how things were done! Then to his shock, and everyone else's, Hanson stopped in midair. He just stopped.

A hand materialized holding onto Hanson, then an arm, then a whole body floating in midair! It..he, was fairly well built with white hair tan skin and the creepiest glowing green eyes. A black formfitting suit with white gloves, a belt, holding a metal suitcase in his other hand, and boots; the whole thing seemed more like the outfits found on aliens in Star Trek than actual real life, but there it was. Jacks mind nearly stuttered to a halt. The man looks around at the awestruck people, turns to Danny and says "are you in trouble again?" He floats away from the Stargate and drops Hanson on the ground.

"Phantom you're here!" Danny shouts and hugs the man. He laughs and smiles, patting Danny on the back.

"Of course I am Danny, have I ever let you down?" Danny, _no Jackson,_ Jacks mind insists, _at least until he can explain this!_ The whole Danny knowing a flying alien and not telling completely blindsided him. But training took over and he quickly retrieved their weapons in light of the possibly new, or old _gah_, threat.

The natives, except Jamala, quickly flee back to their caves while Jack, Teal'c, Carter, and Conner aim at 'Phantom' and Jackson. 'Phantom' eyes them before dismissing them in favor of ruffling Jackson's hair. _Doesn't seem all that dangerous_ Jack muses but keeps his aim steady all the same. Hanson drew himself upright drawing Jackson's attention to him, and then to us.

"Don't try anything" he tells Hanson and turns to us sighing "You know, bullets will only amuse him". 'Phantom' grins, nodding his head in agreement. "And you!" Jackson says, turning to him and pointing his finger "do you have any idea how much trouble I'm in now that you've shown up like this?"

"Think of it as payback for you disappearing" 'Phantom' replies back candidly, "Besides what were you going to tell them when they ask about all the goodies I brought you?" Jackson pauses and considers this.

"I would have thought you would give me a progress report 2 weeks ago." Jackson finally states. "We could have talked about it then in the privacy of my apartment."

'Phantom' shakes his head and makes a tsking sound. _Am I the only one not getting this,_ Jack wonders. Despite his growing agitation he neither looks away nor lowers his weapon. "Revenge isn't fun if you know about it my padawan" _now that is just strange, aliens making cracks on Star Wars._ "And don't get on my case about being late" he snorts annoyed, "the galaxy is a big damn place and only having Chulak for a starting point doesn't make it any easier!"

Jackson smiles sheepishly and offers an embarrassed sorry. "So are you planning on coming back with us?" Jackson asks.

"Nope, the show is all yours. Have fun!" he shouts with a cheery wave and shoving the suitcase into Jackson's hands before fading from our sight. Jackson looks bewildered before swearing in several languages, one being Russian and very creative if anatomically impossible.

Jackson turned toward us, "I don't suppose I could convince you it was your imagination?"

_**The Gateroom**_

"SG-1's IDC Sir!" Walter commented.

"Open the Iris" General Hammond replied. Conner came through the gate pushing SG-9's commanding officer ahead of him; Hanson had his hands tied behind his back with a zip tie. They were followed by Teal'c and Carter carrying a stretcher between them, and finally Daniel Jackson came through toting a silver case with Colonel O'Neill holding him at gunpoint. "SG-1, what is the meaning of this!" _I have enough problems getting this program off the ground I don't need the extra aggravation of SG-1 getting neck deep in it!_

"I will explain during the debriefing…which it might be better to just skip the medical examination and get straight to it" despite Dr. Jackson's words he did not seem too thrilled by the concept. _Dear Lord what have they done now?_ But George had to adhere to the regulations and quickly sent them to the infirmary, with an armed guard of course at Colonel O'Neill's insistence.

_**The Debriefing of Daniel Jackson**_

"So Hanson went AWOL; and the natives of P3X-513 were about to throw him into the Stargate to Earth without sending the IDC first?" George wasn't quite sure what to make of this. He was quite certain that when mobs got something in their mind it was usually difficult to get it out, which begged the question of how Hanson turned up alive. He was run through the entire encounter with this 'Phantom' character by a rather distracted Captain Carter, who threw in various theories on how the flying and invisibility was accomplished.

Turning to Dr. Jackson, who had let O'Neill carry the silver case, but kept it in sight George asked just what was going on. "It's a rather long story so keep in mind I will answer questions but try to keep them to a minimum. There is a bit of ground I need to cover including a large amount of background." Jackson said, looking over everyone at the table gaining varying degrees of agreement. Sighing he merely continued, "Teal'c, just how much of the Galaxy is occupied by the Goa'uld, how many Goa'uld are there, who is the most powerful, what are the size of their armadas, about how many Jaffa are under their command, what kind of weapons do they use, you told us before that they operate in a sort of feudal system so who are they allied with and who are their enemies, are their other races that fight against them, how powerful are they, would any of them be open to an alliance with us?"

Not sure where this was going, and berating himself for the gross overlook in valuable information, George gestured for Teal'c to answer. "I am unfamiliar with how much territory the Goa'uld as a collective control, with the exception of the most well known places. At the moment, after the fall of Ra, Apophis is considered the most powerful, but not by much." He looked completely unfazed by the questions, or answers he gave but seemed to hesitate a bit in giving them. "The size of their armadas and Jaffa warriors are not well known outside the Goa'uld themselves, they fear spies. There is some speculation amongst the Jaffa over the existence of the Tok'ra, a supposedly separate sect of Goa'uld who sabotages the System Lords. The weapons that I am aware of are the Zat'nic'tel, the Staff weapon, and the stun grenade, along with a few training weapons, the Goa'uld Hand Device, which has various settings, and other standard ship-to-ship and ship-to-planet weaponry."

Surprised they waited for more, and vowing to themselves to ask him more about these weapons later they allowed him to continue. "There are various alliances between the Goa'uld, but they are fragile and easily broken creating strong rivalries. The Goa'uld also have the Protected Planets Treaty with the Asgard, which protects a scattering of non-space flight capable planets from their interference. The Asgard are more powerful than the Goa'uld, but they have taken no overt action against them." Done with the brief overview of the questions Teal'c, and the rest of the group after they assimilated the information, turned back to Jackson.

He stared off into space a bit, then sighing he looked to the group waiting for their reactions so far. "As interesting as this is Dr. Jackson, what does this have to do with your…friend?" George asked, realizing that he was giving up control of the conversation to Jackson, but seeing as he hadn't led them astray yet and asking some very important questions George could give him some leeway.

Jackson nodded. "I'll get to that in a minute. I asked Teal'c why the Goa'uld have not just taken over Earth. Do you know what he said?" they shook their heads. "Ra most likely did not want the other Goa'uld knowing he had lost control of Earth, which is why we have been left in peace for so many years. That is not a guarantee in safety, what if one day Ra decided it was worth the trouble and did come back? Or he might have if Jack hadn't nuked him." Jackson paused "When Ra fell Apophis, being his closest 'son', must have snatched up most of Ra's forces." Teal'c bowed his head in agreement. "Apophis also must have found Earth's address in one of Ra's ships; if the gate had been buried then he might not have bothered to investigate. From what Teal'c knows about their FLT drives it would take at least several months to send a mothership to Earth and he would probably have to send at least two. But in the wake of Ra's death he was more likely consolidating his position in the power vacuum that resulted and thus sending the ships here for that long isn't high on his list of priorities. So he used the Stargate and now must have some idea as to how we have advanced in Ra's absence."

A sound and well thought out conclusion as to why Earth was still standing, and it intrigued George enough he let Jackson continue on at his own pace. It wasn't like he was holding back, quite a bit of what he said gave George chills, and he wasn't the only one as evident by the pale faces and uneasy shifting going around the table. For a moment he wondered at the fact that all of this hadn't occurred to him before; he was a veteran in the military and he was supposed to think about worst case scenarios like this. "The truth is, General Hammond, we are only safe as long as the Goa'uld think we are too much trouble to destroy." Jackson sat back as the digested this.

When they seemed to have found their balance again he continued "as far as I can tell the Goa'uld are arrogant and prideful, how do you think they will react when some primitive slaves make fools of them? Let's be honest General, we have worked war down into a brutal efficient art form. Even being technologically less advanced we have practice in guerilla warfare, knowing when and where to hit to make it hurt the most. Do you think that when we go through that gate we won't be faced with those kinds of situations? That we won't take every opportunity available to us? We are going to bruise some major egos, make them look weak and lose face. And it we don't find a way to maintain the status quo they will decide were better off dead and come gunning for us. We can't go back because they know were here; we need any kind of advantage we can get, and that means going through the Gate. Earth is damned either way."

The truth hurts, and scares the hell out of people. Earth's position was so very fragile, what would happen if the Goa'uld did come? George thought back to a bottle of brandy in the bottom drawer of his desk, he kept it for the long nights, and wondered if any of his men would call him on it if he began drinking now. _No,_ he decided,_ I need a clear head. I don't like where this is going already and I have a feeling I'll need all the alcohol I can get later._ "And what would you have us do Danny? You already said we can't change it." _Colonel O'Neill must have forgiven Dr. Jackson for surprising him. This is the first I have heard him say Danny today, must have decided he was trustworthy._

"We need information on just about everything out there" Jackson replied. "And despite what a great help Teal'c is, and could be" the dig at their overlooking the situation was taken in stride, _we deserve it but Dr. Jackson shouldn't be undermining me in front of my men, ahh… he is a civilian_ George decided, "Teal'c is now out of the proverbial loop." Jackson nodded his head to Teal'c and gave him an apologetic smile, Teal'c nodded back not bothered by his words.

"We should send in spies, you know like MI6 to scope out the situation. But there is a major flaw in that plan" Jackson continued. "We don't know enough about Goa'uld technology to use it, most spies don't speak Ancient Egyptian, if they went in as a slave, which is the best they could hope for, they would most likely be in a position where information doesn't exactly flow freely, and the biggest flaw in all is the fact that they could be compromised and infected with symbiotes."

"If your just going to shoot down you own ideas I don't see why we are having this conversation."

"Colonel O'Neill, I doubt he would tell us this unless he had a solution" George rebuked. "Go on son" he continued.

Jackson nodded in agreement. "I examined this from every angel. Ever since Sha're was taken I've been thinking about it. I love her and want her back but I have to consider Earth too. So in the end I decided to call in a favor. This is where Phantom comes in."

"How?" Now this is what they had been waiting for.

"Phantom has the ability to become not only completely intangible but invisible to nearly everything as well. He can go where we can't, listen in to conversations, and bring us back valuable technologies without compromising himself. He can't be seen, or heard, or smelt, or touched, or implanted with a Goa'uld. He's perfect." Jackson reached for the silver case and O'Neill let him have it. Placing in on the table he thumbed in a combination and clicked the case open. Inside were a few peaces of technology in rough foam cutouts. There was a recognizable Hand Device, a large s-shaped thing, a triangular object, a few crystals, and what looked like a Flash drive. Captain Carter eagerly reached towards the objects while the others looked slightly impressed, Dr. Jackson just sat back and waited for their questions.

"So you asked him to spy for us" Jackson nodded. "That still doesn't explain how you know an alien, who he is or why he would owe you a favor, and what he would get out of this arrangement?" George asked more kindly, while not much this was a lot more than they had. And if Jackson was planning to give them these things in the first place he must have known he would have to come clean sometime. Plus there was also the unspoken promise of more in the future.

"And why 'Phantom' would quote Star Wars" O'Neill added helpfully. Jackson just groaned at that and rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"That's because Phantom isn't an alien," at their disbelief Jackson continued "at least not technically. Does anyone have two pieces of paper?" The non-sequester question confused them a bit but Conner easily retrieved the requested items from a side table at George's wave. Once he had said pieces of paper Jackson went on, "now I don't know exactly how or why this works but I'll explain it as best I can. Imagine this piece of paper is our universe" he said holding one of them up. "Earth, our solar system, our galaxy, our entire universe and all the laws of physics that makes it go is represented by this little piece of paper" the explanation so far was simple enough, sort of.

"Now this piece of paper" Jackson held up the other one in his other hand "is exactly the same; same size, made of the same material, the same color, and so on. The only difference is they are two separate pieces, and the fact that they represent two very different places." Carter was practically on the edge of her seat considering all the possibilities. "This is Earth" he placed the first paper on the table, "and this is what is know as the GZ" Jackson placed the second paper exactly on top of the first. "The GZ is Earth, the solar system, the galaxy, and everything in between. As a matter of fact a long time ago the GZ didn't exist and everything there once belonged here."

"You're talking about alternate planes of reality" Carter enthusiastically announced, _I'm glad at least one of us understands_ George thought.

Jackson shrugged unsure "the GZ was created because they were different from us and we didn't get along very well. It was decided that we were better off apart, but creating a whole plane of reality that corresponds directly with the entire universe takes a lot of energy and sometimes the barriers between us become thin enough to cross."

"So… that means what exactly?" Colonel O'Neill asked.

"Sir, a society that most likely evolved on Earth" Captain Carter looked to Jackson and continued at his nod "kind of separated the universe into two in order to have their own world. They can apparently go back and fourth between the two but it isn't very common. Sir, this changes a lot of things."

Jackson smiled and eased back into command of the conversation, "yes, they essentially left. But they couldn't completely separate us so any thing that happens here affects things that happen there. Some of our natural disasters can be contributed to major upsets in the GZ and vice versa. So as you can see they have a minor interest in our continued well being."

"They have known of our existence for a long time then?" George asked for clarification.

"Yes, they have long memories. And before you ask why they haven't helped us before may I remind you that I said they have a minor interest in our continued well being, but that basically extends only to themselves." They looked at Jackson confused and he sighed again. "Some of the not so sane inhabitance of the GZ stumble upon a thin part of the barrier and come here to cause chaos, which they do very well for the simple fact that we don't have all that many defenses against them. The people in command in the GZ send even crazier bounty hunters after them, and some of our people are aware of their existence and act against them as well, though not always as successfully, and they all maintain the status quo. Despite the questionable sanity of the GZ inhabitants" at their curious looks he add a bit more "Phantom's the only one I know that doesn't obsess over something, which is still a debatable assumption. So they are there, they just might not care about the Goa'uld."

Jackson quickly continued "That is not to say that they all don't care, but interaction between us isn't exactly desired. We really are much too different to live or really work together in any sort of capacity. Their not interested in our resources, have longer life spans and centuries pass in a blink of an eye to them, and well their a bit nutty. Besides the people of the GZ are much more fractured than all the nations of Earth, plus there is also the fact that the GZ follows very few of the Laws of Physics as we understand them."

"How is that possible?" Carter asks.

"Well, gravity only really works on the floating islands" at their incredulous stares he snorted, which surprised them even more. "Trust me, I took a little trip there once, won't ever go again, not for all the money in the world. Everywhere else is just a chaotic mishmash of jelly, foam, gel, goo, the occasional solid object, and random portals that go anywhere from different dimensions to planets to throughout time as well. The islands aren't really all that normal either, there's actually a black and white version of a high school from the 50's. You have no idea just how insane that place is, it's a wonder anything gets done."

"You're serious?" it was apparent to everyone that the real question was 'are you a few fries short of a happy meal'? O'Neill probably would have just said it but Carter had beaten him to the punch.

"Sadly, yes. They don't follow the same rules we do, and they do have rules though I'll be damned to know what they are. There is a very good reason were not in contact with each other. And trade is out of the question as well, they aren't very receptive of humans and transport not to mention communication would be more trouble than its worth." Jackson frowned looking at something beyond the room.

"O..Kay. That still doesn't explain your friend. If what your telling us is true there's no way he would help us." Carter stated, although she looked more eager to hear about the GZ itself.

"Phantom is one of only three known Halfas. A Halfa meaning he's half human and grew up here on Earth." The briefing room was silent. This was most defiantly the strangest thing they had heard yet and they were unsure of how to react. The whole debriefing was rather unrealistic in fact. "He was orphaned and we met in a foster home some years ago. When he wants to he can look like a human, he's even able to change his blood color from green to red. I found out when a car ran a stop sign and would have plowed into him if he hadn't gone intangible, I don't think the driver even noticed. We're good friends, and Earth is his home. When he found out about the Stargate I asked for his help, he agreed."

"Is he an American Citizen?" Jackson only nodded. "Completely disregarding the fact that you violated your non-disclosure agreement" Jackson blushed "why hasn't he come forward openly to help us?" It was a reasonable question he should be asking, George decided.

"First of all I didn't violate the non-disclosure; I contacted him when I got back to Earth. He took to following me around and found out everything by himself." Jackson dared them to accuse him again. "Anyway the American Government are aware of the existence of the GZ but isn't aware of our very deeply rooted connection. Basically a group known as the GIW has not only tried to capture Phantom for experimentation but they have almost succeeded in destroying the GZ. I hope that I need not remind you that whatever happens there affects things here; they could have very easily started an ice age. Frankly Phantom doesn't trust you, but because of me he will give you the benefit of the doubt."

"We would not try such things. The fact that we are willing to accept Teal'c, despite his larva, should go a long way in proving our sincerity." George tried to sway him. If everything in the briefing was true, and the silver case full of Goa'uld technology was pretty convincing even if the rest was even more unbelievable, Phantom could be a great asset. An alliance with him, even though he is already an American citizen, would defiantly benefit the safety of Earth as a whole. And apparently the way to Phantom was through Dr. Jackson.

"It's not me you need to convince General" Jackson smiled. "Phantom makes his own way. But I do have to say your reactions so far are very encouraging."

"So you're going to tell him everything. I don't really care for the fact that your loyalties are divided Dr. Jackson" it might seem that George was turning on him, but what else could he say? Phantom could be a welcome asset but if Dr. Jackson was going to be working for them they needed his unwavering support.

"I don't have to, he can hear just fine" they startled.

"You mean he came through the Gate with us" O'Neill demanded, Jackson shrugged. "And you didn't think to tell us?"

"I wasn't really sure; he hasn't talked to me about it. He's probably enjoying me getting grilled and the looks of shock on your faces." Jackson seemed completely unconcerned. _I know,_ George thought to himself as he looked around the room,_ Dr. Jackson said he couldn't be detected but this really drives it home._

"Awww….why'd ya hafta go and ruin my fun Danny?" a voice from out of nowhere asked. "And how'd you know I was here anyway?" a young man with white hair and glowing green eyes faded into view sitting on the table next to Jackson. _This must be Phantom _George decided. The guards at the door aimed their weapons at the intruder but with Dr. Jackson putting his hand through Phantoms torso George waved them off. Phantom only looked at them amused until they returned to their stationary positions, seemingly not noticing Jackson's hand which was now removed, looked around the table.

"I can see my breath" Phantom actually pouted as they realized that the room had gotten a little chilly since the beginning of the debriefing. They just hadn't noticed; seeing their confused looks, which were becoming an alarmingly common occurrence, Jackson continued. "Phantom's pretty much endothermic."

"I'm what?" Phantom asked him.

"And not too bright either" Jackson turned to Phantom, "it means you make rooms cold."

"oh..HEY!" Jackson actually snickered as Phantom pouted even harder.

"So…Mr. Phantom" the words 'just Phantom' interrupted him "Phantom, since you came through the Gate with SG-1 I am afraid I will have to ask you to submit to a medical examination." Before Phantom could speak George continued, "No this is not some type of experimentation, just standard procedure to ensure that anyone off world hasn't brought any nasty bugs back with them" surely he couldn't argue that.

"But I have never been off world as you so call it." Phantom grinned hard at their looks of disbelief. "Another one of my natural talents is to be in many places at once. This particular body has never left Earth through the Stargate, I was already here. As I share my mind between the bodies there is a limit as to how many places I can be, it hinges on my ability to multitask, and I get a little clumsy. But the more practice I get the better I will be able to utilize this talent. It also happens to screw with my pronouns, am I a we or are we an I?" he outright laughed at their surprise. "Anyway don't be too hard on Danny; he tries his best you know. I will keep in contact with you through him and continue my tech drops but you will have limited contact with me until I'm sure I can trust you." And then he was gone.

"Did anyone else notice he didn't say anything about what he could have brought back from when he travels to the GZ?"

_**P3X-562**_

Jack reached for the one unbroken crystal, it called to him. A sudden blast of energy blew him off his feet and into unconsciousness. Then there was another, he picked up Jack's cap and placed it upon his own head before returning to the Gate at Sam's call. Once the Gate shutdown all that was left in the sand, was a man and a single dull blue crystal.

_**SGC**_

"Colonel, are you alright? You don't seem yourself." He responded that he was fine; he needed to find "Charlie" and heal the one called O'Neill before they found out he was wounded. He could not let the massacre happen again, just a little more time.

_**Dr. Jackson's Office, Archeology Department**_

"There's something off about O'Neill."

"God Damn it Phantom! Don't sneak up on me like that." Daniel yelped. "What did you say?"

"There's something off about O'Neill."

"Yes, yes you said that, care to elaborate?"

"Unless I Overshadowed him, no I don't think so."

"Then you will have to plead you case to General Hammond and Dr. Fraiser." Phantom didn't look too enthused with the prospect but gestured for Danny to go ahead. "With how much you've explored this place I would think you would know the way" Daniel eyed him but didn't comment on the fact that he was floating down the corridor beside him.

"That's because I need an escort if I'm going to be visible." Daniel just nodded in agreement as an airman rushed to a phone near the elevator. "So…. Without the babble, what's up?"

"Oh well, SG-7 found these ruins near a pre-bronze age tribe on…." Phantom just tuned him out. As they traveled down the hallways they seemed to pick up an escort, although the looks directed at him by the airman pretty much proved that every one knew that conventional weaponry was a bust. That and the staring from the techies and soldiers they passed in the halls anyway. Daniel's mouth was running a mile a minute and the General, and Dr. Fraiser, was already standing in the briefing room. They stood facing each other for a moment as Danny continued him monologue until Phantom passed through his body.

"GHA! Damn it Phantom how many times have I told you not to do that!" Phantom just smiled before turning to the un-amused General.

"Hey, you're the General of a base that routinely sends teams through a stable wormhole that's over 5,000 years old to gather information and technology in order to defend yourselves from evil body snatching aliens that still play pretend at Egyptian gods; you either need an industrial sized bottle of antacids or a sense of humor. I'd recommend the humor; at least you can make fun of other people's misfortune." The airman's mouth twitched and Dr. Fraiser actually giggled, Phantom only smiled politely.

General Hammond coughed, "so what actually brings you to me Phantom?"

"There's something off about O'Neill."

They all eyed each other; "anything specific?" questioned Dr. Fraiser.

"No, not really"

"Then how…"

**_Unscheduled Off-World Activation**_

They moved to the control room that overlooked the Stargate as Captain Carter enters the room. "Closing the iris" says Walter, then follows with "SG-1 IDC, sir" he looks questionably at the General before receiving the go ahead to open the iris.

O'Neill walks through the gate before saying "You left me!" with a "what the hell?" look.

Phantom's only response was "I told ya so."

_**Captain Carter's Laboratory**_

"So some crystal is walking around in an O'Neill suit?"

"MIB references are not appreciated Phantom" Jack replied.

"We have to find him, his energy must be depleting rapidly" Sam explained to the General, ignoring the jibes Jack and Phantom were taking at each other.

"SG-1 you're a go" they gathered together and went to retrieve their things while bouncing ideas off about where Unity O'Neill would go. "Not you", Hammond said to Phantom who had begun to turn away. "I need you to sign some Non-Disclosure Agreements and despite your reluctance Dr. Fraiser really does need to examine you."

"But, but you can't enforce the Agreement" Phantom replied.

"Nevertheless I would like them signed" Hammond replied adopting his scolding grandfather look. This was a look that seemed to be working really well if the slight cringe of Phantoms shoulders was anything to go by. "Besides I spoke with the President about you and the GIW, although he was not inclined to give me access to the files he informed me that if needed he has a rapid-response team outfitted with ecto-weaponry based in Colorado Springs."

"But the weapons don't work all that well on me, and what about the non-sanctioned groups?"

"I believe the President also said that as someone who is spying for us and getting enough tech to give us an edge deserves personal protection. However the Agreements and the Physical are non-negotiable."

Phantom sighed and nodded, "Is there going to be any anal probing?" Hammond was privately amused, but that would ruin his reputation. His mood was further tweaked as Phantom's next words came, "Hey if I get protection does this mean I get paid too?"

_**SGC Infirmary**_

"Lets check your temp and don't talk" Dr. Fraiser promptly proceeded to shine a pen light in his eyes as a nurse took a blood sample. Despite Daniels explanation about some of his physiology there were still some raised eyebrows over his green blood. There were even more looks at his temperature, and again at his heart rate. A slew of examinations followed, ones where at least half the information seemed so bizarre the medical staff couldn't make heads or tails of it all. The expressions amused him enough that he didn't bother to give them a hard time. "And now I need a urine and a stool sample" the Doctor held both canisters out to him.

"Um…" Phantom stalled as he tried to figure out how to put it delicately. "I don't have any", Dr. Fraiser didn't look impressed. "No I'm serious!" he quickly defended. "I don't really require any intake, aside from the occasional burger craving but that's more of a preference than a need, I mean a nice fat juicy burger with all the toppings. And you really have to go to the fast food places to get one made right 'cause all those restaurants always burn the meat patty and then it tastes like dry burnt crap. Of course you have to deal with the fact that their meat patties are thin and most likely made up of things no one would normally eat but that's part of the fun. Then you have the mystery sauces that are usually thousand island dressing mixed with mayonnaise, and real mayo not that processed miracle whip crap that tastes too sweet…" he paused at the look on her face that continued to get darker by the second. However the airman that had been following him around since Danny's office was not even bothering to hold back a snicker.

"Right, anyways… So my energy level stays pretty constant when I don't eat, I meant of course it goes up and down depending on usage but regenerates itself in time. And half the time I don't have a physical body anyway being made up of energy so when I actually eat the food is completely processed and immediately turned into energy and stored when I don't need it. Thus nothing goes out." She eyed him a moment before deciding that he might just be telling the truth.

"Then why do you have organs" Dr. Fraiser questioned curiously.

"Leftovers" at her steady stare he continued, "humans don't need an appendix, why do you have one?"

"It's a trait that hasn't evolved out of the human race yet."

"Exactly, I'm half human. I don't need it but its still there, and it all works despite the fact that I don't use it. I'm sure given a few hundred years and a lot of boredom I could find a way to halt the processing of food turned into energy just so I can take a crap but right now I don't really see the point." The airman was snickering again and Dr. Fraiser at least put the containers away.

"And what about diseases?"

"What about diseases?" Phantom really didn't know where this was going.

Dr. Fraiser huffed. "The diseases that you might bring back from other worlds or the GZ."

"There is no such thing as a disease as you understand it in the GZ because we are made of energy, plus there is no way to transfer a disease between our races."

"But what if"

He cut her off, "no if. Some have tried but all have failed, even diseases that are tailored to my physiology are completely destroyed within a few days. It just isn't possible."

"But if you were born a Halfa then there has to be some way, some bridge that allowed you to be conceived."

"It was a Lab accident actually, myself and the Others are… unnatural and would have never been made in any other circumstances. Luckily enough we receive the benefits of both worlds with few of the drawbacks."

That certainly put a new spin on things, an accident spawned a hybrid race that from the known abilities made them physically superior to humans as a whole. "Okay. There are a few other questions I have." She paused to organize her thoughts. "Earlier in the briefing to General Hammond, Dr. Jackson said that you have a long lifespan, would you care to elaborate." It wasn't really a question.

"The people of the GZ have a lifespan that is as long as they want it to be." Dr. Fraiser's confusion on the how of it was marginally amusing, and privately to Danny Fenton it was depressing. "Made of energy remember, no body no death, ergo long lifespan." Phantom sighed, "they are the main drive behind the idea of ghosts and the haunting of houses" he said with a wry smile. "So the lifespan thing can be considered that they're here until they decide to 'move on'". He even used air quotes with that one.

"But you're a Halfa, how does that impact your lifespan?"

"I aged until I looked like this then I stopped. One of the Others is older than I and he stopped as well. To be honest it's kinda depressing, I'll always belong more to this world than the GZ but aside from the Others I will pretty much be alone. Because my family died when I was young the reality of it hasn't really hit me yet." Fraiser didn't know what to say to that and the airman had lost all humor, he could also swear one of the nurses sniffled.

Sensing a needed subject change Fraiser vocalized her next question, "if you don't age what do you do about your human life, I mean people must notice that you aren't aging."

"Danny also told the General dude that I can change the color of my blood, I can do similar things to my entire body. I don't have much practice on that other than mostly cosmetic changes that are similar to my baseline." She nodded. Then with a big grin he continued "I turned myself into mist once, by accident, but I can do this!" his happy exclamation was followed by twisting himself into all sorts of shapes while putting enough holes through his body to look like Swiss cheese.

"Jesus Danny I thought what you were swearing was anatomically impossible!" SG-1 had returned.

"Where do you think I got the idea Jack?"


End file.
